I haven't had a dog since I was a teen. I don't want one. While they may be cute and cuddly to some, they also require care and supervision and they smell and they poop and pee and vomit and draw flies and bark. I'm not willing to make the trade-off for the cute and cuddly factor, and that's what I've been telling my kids since they were small.

My daughters have also been taught to respect and be kind to animals, however, have spent a lot of time caring for others' dogs and cats (they both started pet-sitting businesses as kids), and we've had birds (still do), hamsters and fish as pets.

My 23 (almost 24!) year old daughter, Jenny, still lives at home but is planning on moving in a few months. She works at the Pet Hotel and they do an animal rescue adoption event about once a month.

A couple of weeks ago, she brought home a little pomeranian/chihuahua mix, and named her Fiona. The dog is about a year or so old, had apparently been abused, has a couple of teeth missing, lowers her ears and head when you reach for her, as if she's expecting a slap, and is generally skittish.

I was less than pleased at the sight and sound of this smelly little rat of a dog, and demanded that she get rid of it. There was absolutely no way I was going to allow this smelly little poo factory to take over my home. There was no way I we were going to have a dog. I demanded that she get rid of it the next day. No way. No how. Not ever.

Anyway, so now we have a dog.

What was I supposed to do? I had 3 women begging and pleading and promising, and I knew the dog had been abused, and she seemed so sweet and so scared. I decided to let her stay on a trial basis.

Now, for some reason, when Jenny isn't home Fiona is at my side. If I get up, she follows me. If I sit down, she's at my feet, either staring into my eyes or curled up snoozing. She's sitting at my feet as I write this.

I don't know why she'd want to hang out with a grumpy old guy like me (nor why my wife would, for that matter).

Here's the problem (other than the aforementioned ones):

Although with me working from home and the girls having varying schedules, there's usually someone home, but that's not always going to be the case.

When I have an appointment, I can't leave the dog to roam the house or lock her in a room and have her pee and poo all over it, but she's too small to be left in the yard, as I fear she'd walk right through the fence, or might get snatched by a hawk or hummingbird.

My daughter was told she was 'crate-trained' and so I am looking for a free or cheap crate large enough for her to move around in when we have to leave for an hour or two.

Any suggestions?

By they way, she seems to have gotten over her fear of being hit and is really a sweet and affectionate little dog. She watched a football game with me last night and barked when I yelled at the screen. My daughters won't do that for me. Jenny says she's going to buy her a 49er sweater.

For potty training purposes, make sure the crate isn't too large. The dog should be able to stand up, turn around, lie down, and not much else. If it's too large, Fiona could use the bathroom at one end of the crate and chill out at the other end and not be bothered by it.

Also never ever use the crate as punishment, it should be the happiest place on earth where Fiona can go and relax and not worry about doing the right or the wrong thing. Hot dogs and cheese and peanut butter might magically appear whenever she's relaxing in her crate like a good girl.

1) there are no sides. They can lift their leg and hit stuff on the other side of the crate.
2) If you throw a blanket over it to help take away stimulus and get the dog to quiet, often times they will respond by lifting leg and wetting blanket.

Your best bet when crate training is getting a solid wall crate. They will have to lie in if they wet it.

Which goes to next part. Do not feed dog food, snacks or water when in the crate. Do not leave dog unattended in crate for such a time that dog is not able to hold body functions under control. Teach dog to tell you when body functions are creating need to go outside. Also teach dog that the crate is a safe, quiet and non confrontational place.